Mining-machine.



N0. 630,388. Patented Allg. 8, |899..

' C. W. MILLER.

MINING MACHINE.

(Application led Nov. 20, 1898. Renewed Jan. 6, 1,899.) (No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet l.

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MINING MACHINE. (Appxscmon med mv. so, 189e. Renewed su. e, 1899.)

3 SheeiIs-:Sheet 2.

"(No Model.)

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UNITED STATESV PATENT OEEICE.

CHARLES w. MILLER, OE COLUMBUS, OHIO, ASSIGNOR rro JosEPI-I A. JEFFREY, or SAME PLACE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 630,388, dated August 8, 1899.

Application iiled November 20, 1896. Renewed January 6, 1899. Serial No. 701,409. (No model.)

To all whom, it may concern.-

Beit known that I, CHARLES W. MILLER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Columbus, in the county of Franklin and State of Ohio, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Mining-Machines; and I do declare the following to bea full, clear, and exact-description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make-and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

Figure 1 is a plan view illustrating more or less conventionally one form of machine having my improvements applied thereto. Fig. 2 is a central vertical longitudinal section of the same. Fig-3 is a planvview, on an enlarged scale, of the forward end of the movable carriage. Fig. 4 is a front end view of the same. Fig. 5 is a longitudinal sectional view, on an enlarged scale, of the forward portion of said carriage, illustrating in dotted lines the position of my improved holding device prior to entering the kerf and in full lines the position of said holder after it has passed into the kerf. Fig. 6 is a sectional view on the line 6 6 of Fig. 3.

In the drawings I have shown my invention as being applied to a mining-machine of the class in which each has an endless chain to which are attached cutters.

A indicates as a whole a bed-frame, and B indicates a sliding carriage or movable frame. The latter is arranged in guideways on the bed and can be fed forward or drawn backward by means of the power devices, which are generally mounted upon the rear part of the sliding frame or carriage.

When machines Vof this class are in operation, more or less difliculty is experienced from the fact that as the cutters are carried through the coal by the endless chain they exert a reactionary force upon the carriage and bed-frame in the direction Opposite to that in which the chain is moved. This causes not only straining of the parts of the framework, but also acts frequently to cause more or less of the machine to move bodily in the stances.

direction opposite to that in which the cutters l are moving. Numerous means have been devised and proposed for Overcoming the effect of this reactionary thrust or force, such as angers having their bits placed near the transverse vertical plane of the operative cutters, reciprocating picks placed near the same position, cutterdisks, dac. In Patent No. 548,970, dated October 29, 1895, to H. B. Dierdor, there is shown and described one form of holding device. In that case the holder was advanced under pressure with the carriage, it being thrust directly against the coal. The back pressure was one of the principal factors depended upon for preventing the lateral strain or displacement of the machine. Vhen the coal is hard or contains hard substances, the pressure to force such cutter through becomes sometimes more severe than is desirable. To overcome this and to provide the machines with holders suitable for such conditions, use has been made of a rotatable toothed wheel, the .points of which were adapted to penetrate slightly into one of the horizontal walls 'of the chain-kerf, and while this under many circumstances is a desirable and efficient device at the Sametime it has been found that with some species of coal the points may impinge upon layers of refractory materal, and when this occurs there is a vertical pressure on the lines through the active point and the shoe below the cross-head. Another device which has been used for this purpose consisted of a pressure-block placed upon the top of the cutter-head, it having recesses on its under` side wherein were seated rubber blocks. This device is necessarily somewhat expensive in construction and is not readily adjustable with respect to the tension exerted upon the metal by the resilient parts, as is desirable under many circum- TO meet such circumstances, I have devised the present form of holder,4 which acts upon a principle differing from that of either of those above referred to. I avoid ythe expenditure of power required to form a groove or channel for the 'passage of a holder and avoid the liability to have a vertical pressure beyond a desired limit produced at any time. I employ a holder which shall have IOO frictiona'l engagement with one of the hori- Zontal walls of the main kerf, it being formed of anelastic'plate or bar which at one point is fixed in relation to the carriage and at other points is adapted to slip or move longitudinally of the carriage, so that the active frietional part thereof can rise or be de It is rela'- pressed, as occasion may require. tively prolonged, so that an elongated active surface can be provided and so that a yielding action Within remotelimits can be allowed for.

In the drawings, C indicates the holding device.

the form shown, and has its forward end er:L

'tending into a socket or cavity E', formed'in the top plate of the front cross-head D in line with the central push-bar E. The rear end of the holder C is preferablycurved upward slightly tor form a curved surface c,- which permitting the free end of the holder to move longitudinally of the push-bar E, according as the bowed part c rises or falls. The bowed part c' of the holder is of such size as to project some distance above the front cross-head D' and the push-bar E, and when the front cross-head has advanced into the kerf suffi# .ciently far to bring said holder into position for vaction. the pressure exerted by the top horizontal wall of the kerf causes said holder to occupy the position indicated in full lines in Fig. 5, its position prior to entering the kerf being shown in dotted lines in the same figure.

Y, AtI there is a shoe below the cutter-head D. Thisis so related in its dimensions as to not only support the front end of the carriage against sagging under the influence of gravity as it advances farther and farther from the bed-frame, but also so as to insure that the holderC will be 'compressed and held ''rml'y'against its opposing wall of the chainkerf. In the drawings I have shown this shoe' I as secured in place by two vertical bolts; I I2, that at I serving also to connect the holder C to the carriage.

to engage with the vertical walls of the room, being cut in the ordinary manner.

kAny desired and suitable mechanism for advancing the carriage into and withdrawing itvfrom the coal may be employed, it being adapted to be actuated from the motor or engine conventionally illustrated at L, and the It is formed of la strong piece of springsteel, preferably curved longitudinally into i by a holder at the front of the carriage.

friction-holder of the character herein de-- devices for driving the endless cutter-chain are also actuated by the moto-r or engine'L, as is common in the class of machines to which m-y present improvements relate;

The operation of and the advantages incirdent to theA improvementsl above described will be readily understood and appreciated v by those skilled in the art to which they relate. As the carriage is advanced the holder C will beby engagement with the upper wall of the chain-kerf, pressed downwardly from theA position illustrated in dotted lines in Fig.

5 to that shown in full lines in said tigureand Y in Fig. 2, and the strength of. the holder is `such that it will press with sulicient force 'against the wall of the kerf to prevent any side or lateral movement ofthe carriage under the reactionary thrust or force exerted by `the chain. Q proper position, the greater part of the lateral ;stra1n caused by the cutters at the front of :the carriage is overcome by them; but in addition to what may be regarded as the general strain (which is taken by the jacks) there are frequently short snap-like jerks or pu-lls, due to the action of a cutter which is slightly e longer or duller than the others, and in a properly-constructed machine itis the eii'ects The jacks K K' being ii'rrnly in of the latter action which should be overcome A scribed is sufficient to accomplish this, although at the same time the holding action of the parts C and I is not lof such a nature as to unduly resist the advance of the carriage. The holder will act with uniform pressure at all points, it yield-ing readily in either direction to accommodate itself to any irregularities in the surface against which it is acting.

While I have above shown and at present prefer to place the holder C above the carriage and arrange the shoe I directly beneath the same, there can be mod'ications in the arrangement of parts, if desi-red. Instead of making the shoe I detachable one or more integral ribs may be formed on the bottom plate D of the carriage-head D.

I do not claim any of the features of invention appearing in the application of H. B. Die-rdorff, Serial No. 558,765, filed August 9, 1895.

What I claim is-'-- 1 l. In a mining-machine, the combination with a bed-frame, adapted to be made stationary, a carriage mounted on said bed and K K designate the front and rear jacks, respec'tively, they being secured to the bed- 1 frame A in the ordinary manner and adapted movable longitudinally thereof, an endless cutter-'chain supported on the carriage, and means for moving the carriage longitudinally of the bed and for actuating said cutter-chain, of a vertically-yielding holder, C, consisting of an elastic plate having one end secured to the front crosshead of the carriage, an intermediate curved or bowed portion, c', adapted to Icontact with the adjacent 'horizontal Wall of the kerf formed by the cutter-chain,

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and having an oppositely-curved end portion c, bearing upon the carriage and sliding longitudinally thereof, substantially as set forth.

2. In a mining-machine, the combination With a bed-frame adapted to be made stationary, a carriage, a cutter-chain supported on the carriage, and means for moving the carriage longitudinally of the bed and for actuating the cutter-chain, of aholder, for preventing lateral movement of the carriage, it consisting of an elastic bar or plate of spring metal having one end rigidly secured to the carriage, an intermediate curved vor bowed portion, c', adapted to contact with one of the horizontal .Walls of the kerf formed by the cutter-chain, and a free end bearing on and sliding longitudinally of the carriage and an abutment for the side of said holder-plate, substantially as set forth.

3. In a mining-machine, the combination with a bed-frame, adapted to be made stationary, a carriage, mounted on said bed and movable longitudinally thereof, an endless cutter-chain supported on the carriage, and means for moving the carriage longitudinally of the bed and foractuating said cutter-chain, of a vertically-yielding holder, C, consisting of an elastic plate havingone end secured to the front cross-head of the carriage, an intermediate curved or bowed portion, c', adapted to contact with the adjacent horizontal wall of the kerf formed by the cutter-chain, and having an oppositely-curved end portion c, bearing upon the carriage and sliding longitudinally thereof, and means bearing against the opposite Wall of the chain-kerf to relieve the carriage of displacing pressure, substantially as set forth.

4. In a mining-machine, the combination of the carriage, the cutter-chain supported on the carriage, the shoe or support on the under side of the carriage, and the holdingspring on the upper side of the carriage, said spring being formed of an elastic piece of metal having an end loose to slide or move longitudinally and a vertically-movable coalengaging portion between its ends, substantially as set forth.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two Witnesses.

CHARLES XV. MILLER. Vitnesses:

A. D. SHAW, C. A. DoDDs. 

